CATEGORIES

INGREDIENTS

1 1-liter Sprite, ginger ale or club soda (or any combination of these)

DIRECTIONS

Dissolve sugar into water. Set aside.

Blend bananas, pineapple juice & OJ concentrate in blender.

Add juice mixture to sugar water.***

Add carbonated drink (lemon-lime pop or ginger ale). Stir gently to mix. Pour into plastic pitcher or bowl and freeze 4-24 hours (longer and the bananas will make the punch dark & unappetizing-looking).

Punch will thaw at room temperature. You will need to thaw punch at least 30-45 min before the party. It thaws slowly, even in hot weather, and stays nice & cool. Feel free to restock by adding more pop.

3a.If you don't have much freezer room or a large enough container, freeze only this portion of the punch (the juices + sugar water). Add pop at the party instead.***

5a. If you froze the version w/o the pop in it, thaw the juice + sugar water mixture for 20-30 minutes, scrape punch (like a snowcone or shaved ice) and add room-temperature pop to serve.***

For adult Pineapple Party Punch, add 1 1/2 c rum (or vodka) and add to juices. Thaw about 5-10 minutes before you begin scraping the ice.

For another variation, if you feel really ambitious, make the juice + sugar water into ice cubes and dump into bowl. Pour pop over ice cubes. I have no idea how many ice cube trays you would need other than "a lot."

Makes about 24 servings.

RECIPE BACKSTORY

This is my favorite punch to make for parties. It has a citrus kick & is easily variable (add more pineapple, only one banana, whatever).
You'll need a very large pitcher or punch bowl to serve (or serve in stages) and room in your freezer to make it.
I've included a variation here that saves freezer space but the regular version is much easier, since there's no scraping or party-time prep needed. Look for the *** to see the variation steps.